Detox-Fit™

Tag: personal training

Frankly, when you look at the simple nutritional facts and the effects that each one of these have in your body, there’s no contest here.

Beans are highly nutrient-dense and packed with health boosting and protecting phytonutrients, fibre and antioxidants. Fibre is an essential nutrient for digestion and cancer prevention, yet it’s estimated that about 97% of people are deficient in it. We repeat – 97%! They are also high in complex carbohydrates -which are (or certainly should be) the first and main source of sustained release of energy for both our body and mind-, low in fat, calories and sodium, and completely cholesterol-free. Beans are also an outstanding source of healthy and protein that it’s optimally digested and absorbed by the human body. Basically, when you eat beans, you are nurturing your body with goodness, not nasty stuff, not potential detrimental health consequences.

When it comes to eating pieces of cow (or beef, as some insist on calling it), the story changes dramatically. Like all animal protein, cows’ flesh is a highly acidic protein, which is also laden with fats, cholesterol, isn’t optimally digested by our body and has a very poor nutritional value. A shocking 80% of the calories you get from it come from mostly saturated fats, while 0% calories come from complex carbohydrates. It also contains natural animal hormones, including animal oestrogens, which are directly linked to some types of cancers. Additionally, the cows that will be turned into meat products are usually also given extra added hormones, antibiotics and stereoids. Cow flesh also forms heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are chemicals formed when muscle meat such as that from cows, pigs, fish, or chickens, is cooked at high temperatures. This has been conclusively proven to both cause and increase the risk of cancer, and is even acknowledged in several cancer resource websites.

To top it all off, eating cows’ flesh currently stands in the Group 2A on the IARC Carcinogenic Classification Groups as a highly probable carcinogenic, together with eating pigs and lambs, just one spot below Group 1, which includes meats such as bacon, sausages and salami as confirmed carcinogens, together with smoking and asbestos. We have no doubt that the cow, pig and lamb meats currently sitting in Group 2A will be also moving up to Group 1 soon, and thus officially confirmed as a carcinogen too.

When you look at things with common sense it’s easy to realize that, in any case, we are not meant to eat cows. It doesn’t matter how obsessed one is with eating peppered steaks and cow meatballs, the simple truth is that no human would be able to kill a cow with their bare hands. Let alone rip their raw flesh off and chew on it as it is. Still, your body physiology and behaviour will remain to be the number one evidence that confirms that it won’t be able to digest it and deal with it effectively.

Indeed, when you eat pieces of cows you aren’t doing your body any favours, and you certainly are causing more harm than good. There are much better options out there that actually don’t involve eating any animal carcasses, but just real vibrant food that is packed with nutrients and goodness.

When it comes to beans, there are many different ways to enjoy them: in burritos, in burger shape, in curries, salads, stews, spreads, purees, etc… Follow our lead and #gobeanyourself

Your body, health and the cows will be grateful for it – That’s a promise!

People go plant-based for lots of reasons. These include reducing the risk of heart disease, losing weight, feeling more energetic, improving fitness performance, decreasing the number of pills they take, for ethical reasons… there are many great reasons!

For even more inspiration, check out Dr. Michelle McMacken’s latest fantastic piece, as published on Forks Over Knives, which goes through 7 benefits you can expect when you go plant-based:

1- You’ll reduce inflammation in your body:Eating meat, cheese and highly processed foods = elevated levels of inflammation in the body. While short-term inflammation (such as after an injury) is normal and necessary, inflammation that lasts for months or years is not. Chronic inflammation has been linked to the development of atherosclerosis, heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, and autoimmune diseases, among other conditions. In contrast, plant-based diets are naturally anti-inflammatory as they are high in fiber, antioxidants & phytonutrients.

2- Your blood cholesterol levels will plummet: Elevated blood cholesterol = a key risk factor for heart disease and strokes. Saturated fat—primarily found in meat, poultry, cheese, and other animal products—is a major driver of our blood cholesterol levels When you go plant based blood cholesterol levels drop by up to 35% Whole-food, plant-based diets reduce blood cholesterol because they tend to be very low in saturated fat and they contain zero cholesterol. Moreover, plant-based diets are high in fiber, which further reduces blood cholesterol levels. Soy has also been shown to play a role in lowering cholesterol, for those who choose to include it.

3- You’ll give your microbiome (the trillions of microorganisms living in your body) a makeover:These microorganisms help us digest food, produce critical nutrients, train our immune system, turn genes on and off, keep our gut tissue healthy, and help protect us from cancer. Studies have also shown they play a role in obesity, diabetes, atherosclerosis, autoimmune disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and liver disease.

Plant foods help shape a healthy intestinal microbiome. The fiber in plant foods promotes the growth of “friendly” bacteria in our guts. On the other hand, fiber-poor diets (such as those that are high in dairy, eggs, and meat) can foster the growth of disease-promoting bacteria. Ittakes only a few days for our gut bacterial patterns to change – the benefits of a plant-based diet start quickly!

4- You’ll change how your genes work:The antioxidants & other nutrients in whole plant foods can change gene expression to optimize how our cells repair damaged DNA. We’ve even seen that a plant-based diet, along with other lifestyle changes, can lengthen our telomeres—the caps at the end of our chromosomes that help keep our DNA stable. This might mean that our cells and tissues age more slowly, since shortened telomeres are associated with aging and earlier death.

5- You’ll reduce chances of getting type 2 diabetes:Animal protein has been shown in study after study to increase the risk of type 2 diabetes. In the Adventist population, omnivores have double the rate of diabetes compared with vegans, even accounting for differences in body weight. In fact, in this population, eating meat once a week or more over a 17-year period increased the risk of diabetes by 74%! Similarly, in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study and Nurses Health Study, increasing red meat intake by more than just half a serving per day was associated with a 48% increased risk in diabetes over 4 years.

You will dramatically lessen your chances of getting type 2 diabetes by leaving animal products off of your plate and eating a diet based in whole plant foods. This is especially true if you eat whole grains, which are highly protective against type 2 diabetes. You read that right: carbs actually protect you from diabetes! Also, a plant-based diet can improve or even reverse your diabetes if you’ve already been diagnosed.

6- You’ll get the right amount -and the right type- of protein:Contrary to popular perception, this excess protein does not make us stronger or leaner. Excess protein is stored as fat or turned into waste, and animal protein is a major cause of weight gain, heart disease, diabetes, inflammation, and cancer.

On the other hand, the protein found in whole plant foods protects us from many chronic diseases. There is no need to track protein intake or use protein supplements with plant-based diets; if you are meeting your daily calorie needs, you will get plenty of protein. The longest-lived people on Earth, those living in the “Blue Zones,” get about 10% of their calories from protein, compared with the US average of 15-20%.

7- You’ll make a huge impact on the health of our planet and its inhabitants:Animal agriculture is extremely destructive to the planet. It is the single largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, and is a leading cause of land and water use, deforestation, wildlife destruction, and species extinction. About 2,000 gallons of water are needed to produce just one pound of beef. Our oceans are rapidly becoming depleted of fish; by some estimates, oceans may be fishless by 2048. The current food system, based on meat and dairy production, also contributes to world hunger—the majority of crops grown worldwide go toward feeding livestock, not feeding people. Just the food that we put aside every year to fatten up animals to turn them into food products could feed about 11 billion people.

Equally important, animals raised for food are sentient beings who suffer, whether raised in industrial factory farms or in farms labelled “humane.” Eating a plant-based diet helps us lead a more compassionate life. After all, being healthy is not just about the food we eat; it’s also about our consciousness—our awareness of how our choices affect the planet and all of those with whom we share it.

Have you ever heard of “fecal soup”? Over 130 million chickens are killed every day worldwide to be turned into products. During processing the chicken corpses are disemboweled and later soaked in a chill tank before being packaged and sent to distributors.

A federal inspector said, “We often see birds going down the line with intestines still attached, which are full of fecal contamination. If there is no fecal contamination on the bird’s skin, however, we can do nothing to stop that bird from going down that line. It is more than reasonable to assume that once the bird gets into the chill tank, that contamination will enter the water and contaminate all of the other carcasses in the chiller. That’s why it’s called ‘fecal soup.’”

Tests carried out have shown that fecal bacteria tested positive and as present in nearly 50% of the samples. High cooking heat to cook the chickens’ flesh does not remove the feces – it merely cooks it along with the muscle tissue.

See below a list with the 5 worst contaminants in chicken products:

1. Feces: Chickens can soak in “fecal soup” for up to an hour before being packaged for consumers.

2. Toxic chemicals: Peracetic acid and chlorine are both commonly used to treat chicken for contaminants.

3. Superbugs: Nearly 75% of bacterially tainted chicken products harbour germs resistant to one or more types of antibiotics.

4. Carcinogens: Arsenic in chicken can increase the risk of lung and bladder cancer deaths.

5. Cholesterol: Both 4 ounces of cow and 4 ounces of chicken contain approximately 100 mg of cholesterol.

Funny how none of these are ever shown on the labels, right?

When it comes to fat, there is this persistent myth that says that chicken meat is low in fat, which in fact isn’t true as typical chicken servings are about 50% fat, 30% of it saturated, which stimulates the body’s production of cholesterol. Regarding nutritional value chicken has pretty much zero, no fiber and no antioxidants.

It should be compulsory for these nasty products to come in accurately and honestly labelled packages, to inform consumers that they are very likely eating feces and several other contaminants. And also showing pictures of what the animals go through before becoming a product, instead of showing deceiving fantasy cartoon images of happy smiling chickens dancing and saying “eat me, I’m cheap.”

Are you struggling to lose weight? Do you think that you are doing everything you need to in order to lose weight effectively? Well, truth is that if you aren’t losing weight it simply is because you aren’t doing it right. You see, when it comes to weight and fat loss there’s no magic potion, but there *is* a very straightforward and simple formula. Check this out:

Do the right form of exercise + eat well + be consistent with both = Results

No rocket science, is it? If you are struggling to lose weight, see below some of the most common reasons of why this is happening:

EATING TOO MUCH:
Sounds pretty obvious, right? Yet many people underestimate how much they eat, and eat more than what they need. If you have been following us on social media channels (Instagram @detox.fit and Facebook DetoxFitlifestyle) you will know that we don’t agree with the “calories in, calories out” argument. We do agree with this as it’s simple science, but only to a certain extent. So yes, you *shouldn’t* be consuming more calories than you expend during the day, as these may end up being stored and turned into fat. However -and this is a very big and important however- it isn’t the same to eat 300 calories of cheese than eating 300 calories of broccoli. Why? Because the cheese is full of fat and other nasties, whereas the broccoli isn’t.

If you really have no idea how much you’re eating and when it’s too much for you, the best is to learn about the foods you eat and what they do to your body both in the short and in the long-term, and also check out the nutrition labels and learn about portion control.

EATING TOO LITTLE:
To many people this may be surprising, we know. Yet this is a very common mistake which we see happening all the time. People think that by eating little they will lose weight, as they don’t put calories into their bodies. This sort of approach is what we call “semi-starvation” diets. This isn’t healthy and it isn’t good. We don’t support any fad diets. No Atkins, no the onion soup diet, no the tea diet. They are all unhealthy. Yes, many of them do *work* for a while and people can lose weight doing this, but so do people who are starving because they have no food and no choice. This isn’t a healthy or enjoyable approach, and after doing it you will end up piling on the pounds again faster. It isn’t healthy for your body and it isn’t healthy for your brain either, as this will be crammed with frustration. These extreme diets over time slow down your metabolism, making it more sluggish, and bring your fat loss to a screeching halt.
To make things worse, when your body is in a severe caloric deficit for an extended period of time, it can start to use your hard-earned muscle as fuel, in a process known as catabolism. No good!

MINDLESS EATING:
Many times you may find yourself eating when you aren’t even hungry. Your body isn’t telling you it needs food, but you find yourself eating anyway. A handful of nuts here, a few pieces of candy there, an extra spoonful of peanut butter. Sound familiar? We’ve all done it. If you find your weight loss at a standstill, tuning into your mindless snacking and paying attention to your true hunger signals can help tremendously. Are you really hungry when you grab that extra handful of pretzels, or do they just sound good? Do you need the extra 200 calories of peanut butter, or are you just digging your spoon deeper because the jar is there?

YOU ARE ON A “DIET”:
The diet mentality is never a good one to have, but sadly it’s everywhere these days. Because, today more than ever before, most people’s eating and lifestyle habits are bad. Crash dieting for a while and then going into overdrive gorging on all of your favorite and not-so-healthy foods isn’t going to help you to lose weight anytime soon. In fact, it often has the opposite effect.

We don’t *need* to be on a “diet” to lose weight. What happened to just making healthy choices the majority of the time and working out?

We don’t diet. Never ever. We just eat healthy and lead a healthy lifestyle. That’s as easy and simple as it gets. No diets and no calories restrictions for us. Just nurture your body with the foods that your body really needs and do the right form of exercise. Stick to both of these and results will follow. Guaranteed!

If you have any questions about fitness, nutrition or health, and would like to get our crazy advise, just ask. It’s free and we are always happy to help!